Strangely Unsettling: Weird Horror You Can’t Look Away From..as Much as You Might Want To
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Strangely Unsettling: Weird Horror You Can’t Look Away From
One of this year’s Read Harder 2025 tasks is to pick up a work of weird horror. Because both “weird” and “horror” are up to the interpretation of the reader, those who are new to either horror or weird fiction can feel lost as to what might qualify. Find below several examples of great recent weird horror. Some of these stories will scratch the itch you may have for dark academia, some explore the hollow promises of the wellness world, and still others will have you wondering whether or not what the main character tells you is happening to them really is.
Let’s get a little weird.
Murder Checks In: 5 Mysteries in Hotels and Motels
Some of you may be going through withdrawal as the most recent season of The White Lotus has ended. The setup is perfect – a hotel where all sorts of people mingle and mix that probably wouldn’t in their daily lives. And there’s a time limit – people will eventually leave. It’s a perfect mix for high emotions and devilish intentions. So if you need some more drama and murder at a hotel or motel, I’ve got you covered.
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New Trends in Romance Book Covers—and More Romance Links
Hello, love lovers! Today you can read about the new adaptation of Judy Blume’s Forever, the fan-favorite character who got their own YA romance from Tia Williams, the big trends right now in romance covers, and more. Let’s go!
12 Captivating YA Fantasy Romance Series
Fantasy coming-of-age tales involving romantic plotlines have long been a feature of global storytelling traditions. Many Arthurian legends, like Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, imagine King Arthur and his court as teenagers. As people began to write fantasy novels, it is not surprising that teenagers coming of age in fantasy worlds continued their popularity. By the 1960s, YA was developed by librarians into a new literary classification category, and thus, YA fantasy was formally born.
The Game is Afoot and Accessorized: Sherlock Holmes Gifts for Readers
It was some time before I was old enough for the Arthur Conan Doyle originals, but I have been a steady consumer of Holmesian books, shows, and movies in one form or another pretty much ever since Dorlock put me on. That isn’t hard to do when new takes on Sherlock and friends pop up all the time (Sherry Thomas’ Lady Sherlock series, the CBS show Watson, and Netflix’s Enola Holmes films to name a recent few). If you too are a fan of all things Sherlock, celebrate this Sherlock Holmes Day (5/22) by treating yourself to these pencils, candles, artwork, perfume, and more. These Sherlock Holmes gifts pair perfectly with an afternoon of reading, or chasing down clues.
Portal Fantasy Graphic Novels
As a child, I often prowled my home, and my grandparents’ home, looking for hidden passageways and secret doors that might lead me somewhere new and exciting. As an underemployed adult overwhelmed by the demands of motherhood and the horrors of whatever timeline we’re living in now… sure, I wouldn’t mind opening the door to the laundry room only to find that instead of a drying rack covered with sweaters I need to fold, there’s a caticorn beckoning me toward something cooler.
So yes, I still love a good portal fantasy. In graphic novel form? Even better.
